The context
Family involvement is central and negotiations usually run between the two families rather than the couple. A large diaspora in the UK, the Gulf and North America means most transnational relationships already have a path worn into them.
Entering the country
A visa is required for almost every nationality; an online system exists and should be used through the official portal. Family visit visas ask for an invitation and proof of the relationship.
Marrying, and having it recognised
The nikah is contracted before witnesses with a nikahnama setting out the mahr. What matters for anything outside the country is the registration and the NADRA marriage certificate, then attestation by the foreign ministry and legalisation by your own embassy. See civil marriage in Pakistan.
Getting there
Direct flights from the Gulf, the UK and parts of Asia; from elsewhere a connection. Check travel advice for specific regions before planning internal travel.
Customs and family
Mayun, mehndi, the nikah, the rukhsati — the bride's departure — and the walima given by the groom's family spread the celebration over several days. See wedding customs in Pakistan.
Points to watch
- An unregistered nikah is invisible abroad. Registration is the step that matters.
- Attestation takes time: foreign ministry, then your embassy. Start early.
- Check regional travel advice before any internal journey.
Two absolute prohibitions, wherever you live
Sex tourism and any relationship with a minor are punished here as everywhere, and your own country's law follows you abroad. For sexual offences against a child, almost every state sets aside dual criminality and dispenses with any complaint: you can be prosecuted and tried at home whatever the local law says and whatever the local authorities do. See sexual offences committed abroad.
If you met online
The warning signs are the same everywhere: a very fast escalation, a systematic refusal of video, a request for money for an urgent reason, pressure to leave the platform. The rule holds here as anywhere: you do not send money to someone you have never met face to face. Someone genuine will happily take a video call, meet in a public place and introduce you to their family.
Spotting and reporting a romance scam — Pakistan
Pakistan: everything on this site
This country appears on 35 other pages of this site, across every section. Here they all are, in one place.
Sexuality
Health
- Assisted reproduction
- Abortion
- Alcohol and tobacco
- Contraception
- HIV and AIDS
- HPV
- Hepatitis B
- Mental health
- Pregnancy
Advice
Marriage
- Same-sex marriage
- Divorce
- Marriage
- Matrimonial property and inheritance
- Partnerships and cohabitation
- Religious ceremony
- Wedding customs and ceremonies
Names
Rights
- Adoption
- Copyright
- Data protection
- Fundamental rights
- Identity theft
- Image rights
- Online shopping
- Privacy
- Sexual offences committed abroad
- Speech and online harassment
Official sources and links
- Your own foreign ministry's travel advice — read it before each departure: it also conditions your travel insurance. Official portals: United Kingdom · United States · Canada · Australia · New Zealand · Ireland
- Your consular post there, or the one covering the country — civil status, marriage, emergencies; note the number before you go. Official directories: United Kingdom · United States · Canada · Australia · New Zealand · Ireland
- World Health Organization — health recommendations by destination
- Hague Conference on Private International Law — celebration and recognition of the validity of marriages